


I'll Bring You Home

by Dormammu



Category: Avengers Assemble (Cartoon), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Coda, M/M, Steve Feels, Steve Rogers Feels, post-04x13, sad Steve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 03:37:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12472596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dormammu/pseuds/Dormammu
Summary: Ever since coming back from Dimension Z, Steve spends his nights listening to the silence of the transdimensional radio.





	I'll Bring You Home

It's half past one, Avengers compound is quiet and dark. Steve can't sleep.

He tosses and turns until half past two, when he turns on the bedside light and sits up. He deliberates for a moment what to do next, or at least that's what he'd say to anyone who asked. The next moment he's in the compound's communications room.

He sits opposite the newly-configured transdimensional radio, the indicator light is glowing green which means it's turned on. It has been turned on for a week now, ever since they came back to their reality, but he likes to check anyway. For a week they've heard nothing from the other side.

Steve sighs. He knows it's beyond hope, to just sit there and stare at the receiver every night, trying to will Tony's voice to reverberate from the speakers, say something incomprehensible to him, laugh... He still does it, can't help it, Tony can't be gone.

So he listens intently, hoping for even a tiny sound, a speck of white noise from the pocket dimension, anything.

No answer, just silence.

He thinks about the perfect thing to say into the void, something that would reach Tony across infinite dimensions and make him answer back.

Things he tried in the past week: "Come back?", "We miss you.", "Someone needs to rebuild the tower, our home.", "Come back, please.", "I'll let you win at pinochle.", "It's so quiet without you.", and, yesterday: "I dreamt about you last night, you kissed me. I was happy." He started tearing up as he was saying it.

Tonight, Steve will say something big, and tomorrow he won't come back. Not because he's giving up on Tony - that is out of the question. Instead of coming here, tomorrow he'll finally sleep, get a good night's rest. If there's any sign of Tony, the alarms will sound off and the Avengers will assemble and decide how to bring Tony back. It's the sensible thing to do.

He stares at the radio some more, choosing words, stalling. Maybe this time he'll succeed. Maybe.

He gets up, takes a deep breath and says, in a clear voice: "Tony, I think I might be in love with you."

He holds his breath, listens.

There's no answer.

He sits back down, opposite the radio. Exhales. A tear rolls down his cheek. He wishes the connection were visual, because Steve tearing up because of him would surely make Tony...

He shakes his head. It's too late, isn't it? He should've figured it out much earlier. He should've protected Tony.

"I'll do whatever it takes, I'll bring you home," he says quietly. Not sure whom he's trying to convince more.

 

 ----

 

In the morning, he wakes up in pain, having spent the night in the chair opposite the radio, dozing off in fits, dreaming, sometimes of Tony, sometimes not. A typical nighttime routine ever since he came back from Dimension Z. Despite his decision not to come back again, he feels a familiar ache in his chest as he realizes he'll be back tonight.

He slowly gets off the chair, stretches. He eyes the radio once more: still turned on, still silent. He looks at the clock, it's almost eight, better head to his room, get dressed, and pretend he slept in a normal bed.

He leaves the communications room, and just as he's about to round the corner and slip into his room, he almost collides with Ms. Marvel.

"Cap! Here you are!" she says in a high pitched voice. She looks excited. "I just got a message from Dr. Foster, she did it!"

"Did what?" he asks, hoping for just one thing.

"She found Tony! Located him with her... science dimension doorway-opening thingy! She said she wants to try and send one of us to go get him. She's on her way now."

Without waiting for his reply, Ms. Marvel grabs him by the hand and together they rush to the compound lab.

On his way there, there's only one thing on Steve's mind, occupying the entirety of it. 

_I will bring you home, Tony, I'll do whatever it takes._

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Since AA didn't deliver, I tried to.


End file.
